Recently, with diversification of lives, improvement of life level, changes and improvement of attitudes, and the like, attention has been paid to various points around one's life. One of them is existence of various malodors. Main malodorous components to be targeted include nitrogenous compounds such as ammonia, urea, indole, skatole, and amines; sulfur compounds such as methyl mercaptan, hydrogen sulfide, and dimethyl sulfide; and lower fatty acids such as butyric acid. Heretofore, there are a number of reports on deodorants that are used to eliminate or reduce the malodors.
For example, JP-A-11-319051 discloses a deodorant containing a polyphenol component extracted from apple as an active component. However, the deodorant is insufficient in the deodorizing effect. Moreover, a deodorant composition containing a plant extract and a phenol oxidase as components is also known (cf. e.g., JP-A-9-38183, JP-A-10-212221, and so forth). However, although these deodorants are excellent in the deodorizing effect, they have a problem that preparation processes thereof are rather complicated.
On the other hand, there is a report in Food. Sci. Technol. Res., 6(3), 186-191, 2000 that the deodorizing effect of a specific polyphenol is confirmed in an NH4OH solution or in an NaHCO3 solution. Moreover, in Biosci. Biotechnol. Biochem., 65(10), 2121-2130, 2001, there is a report that a colored compound can be prepared by reacting a caffeic acid ester and an amino acid.
As the deodorant composition, there is desired a deodorant composition capable of maintaining a deodorizing ability for a long period of time as far as possible. Moreover, a deodorant composition having an excellent deodorizing effect on various malodorous components such as nitrogenous compounds, sulfur compounds, and lower fatty acids is expected.